The completion of the Settlement Commissioner's work and the secured amount due to unwilling victims can be grounds for quashing the prosecution under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

JUDGMENT

(Prayer: Petition filed under Section 482 of Code of the Criminal Procedure, 1973, praying to call for the entire records in CC.No.07 of 2018 on the file of Principal Sessions Judge, Chennai, Special Court Constituted under The Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, and to quash all further proceedings in C.C.No.07 of 2018 against the petitioners.)

P.N. Prakash, J.

1. This Criminal Original Petition has been filed seeking to quash the entire proceedings in C.C.No.07 of 2018 pending on the file of Special Court Constituted under The Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, Chennai.

2. On a complaint given by one Dinesh Kumar, a case in Crime No.454 of 2008 on the file of K-1, Sembiam Police Station was registered under Section 420 of IPC r/w Section 4, 5 and 6 of the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978 r/w 120-B of IPC against one M/s.QuestNet Enterprises India Private Limited. This case was transferred from the file of K-1, Sembiam Police Station to CB CID by the orders of the Director General of Police, Tamil Nadu, dated 22.05.2008. Since there were several FIRs pending against the said company all over Tamil Nadu, they were all clubbed together in Crime No.454 of 2008 and the CB CID conducted a comprehensive investigation and filed a charge sheet in C.C.No.3876 of 2009 on 21.10.2009 in the court of the learned II Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore, Chennai, for the aforesaid offences as against 25 accused including M/s.QuestNet Enterprises India Private Limited (A1). Since the police case disclosed the commission of a scheduled offence under Prevention of Money Laundering Act, the Enforcement Directorate, registered a case in ECIR/CEZO/11/2016 (KCM) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2022 and after completing the investigation filed a complaint in C.C.No.07 of 2018 in the Special Court for PMLA Cases (Principal Sessions Court), Chennai, against 12 accused, including 6 entities. While so, the accused in C.C.No.3876 of 2009 filed a petition under Section 482 of Cr.P.C. in Crl.O.P.No.24461 of 2016 in which this court appointed Honourable Mr.Justice S.Jagadeesan, Former Judge of this Court as Settlement Commissioner to go into the affairs of the M/s.QuestNet Enterprises India Private Limited and disburse the amounts that were due to the various customers. It may be pertinent to extract the portion of the order dated 23.10.2017 in Crl.O.P.No.24461 of 2016:-

“10. The above events abridged from the Settlement Commissioner’s final report are not exhaustive, but just a few, reflecting on the Company’s conduct. I am constrained to refer to them, consciously, to ensure that such intrusions should not further occur, thereby making it difficult during this second effort. While I impose trust on the petitioner’s submission that they really intend to settle all its members for the purpose of compounding the offences, this Court will not permit any further dilatory techniques of thwarting or delaying either the adjudication or the disbursement. This Court shall not permit the Company to henceforth turn the efforts initiated by the Hon’ble Supreme Court into a mockery. Hence, there shall be a direction to the learned Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore, Chennai to expedite the trial in C.C. No. 3876 of 2009 and complete the same, within six months from today. However, the pronouncement of the verdict in C.C. No. 3876 of 2009 shall be kept in abeyance, until further orders of this Court in view of the proposed adjudication. In addition to this, the following further directions are issued:

a) The Hon’ble Mr.Justice S.Jagadeesan, Former Judge of the Madras High Court is required to adjudicate any claimants who may appear before him and determine the claim amount on convincing proof and evidence which may be placed before him in connection with the money circulation scheme floated by M/s. QUESTNET ENTERPRISES INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED, Chennai.

b) Mr.B.S.Anandakumar and Ms.Kalarani, I